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Name ______________________ Class ___________ Date _______________

Introduction:
Your school has decided to secede from the United States and become its own nation, “The United People of Knowledge.” There are many tasks ahead of your new country: electing a leader, writing a new set of laws, choosing a currency, creating a new flag, etc. One very important task to be preformed is to establish a standard set of Weights and Measures.

The Task:
The provisional government has assigned a group of their top scientists, including you, the task of choosing the official units of measurement for your country. You will compare the metric system (Also called SI) and the US/English systems for length, mass, and volume, and answer the following question:

Overall, which system is better and why?

The Process:
-Part 1, Individual work
1. Divide into groups of 3 students. Use a copy of the Research Sheet for each student.
2. Each member of your group choose a topic to research: length, mass or volume .
3. As an individual, go to each one of the sites below and gather the following information for your measurement:

What are the units, smallest to largest, in metric and US/English standard?
How do you convert from one unit to another in both metric and US/English Standard (Ex. centimeters to meters, inches to feet)?
On what is each measurement based (Where did it come from? WHY is a foot called a foot)?
In your opinion, which system, metric or US/English, is easier to use and WHY?

IMPORTANT: On each page, try to find a link or button that takes you to a section on the metric system (SI) and/or the US/English system. Don’t just try to look up “volume” or “length, ” etc.

4. Record the information you gather in the appropriate columns on your Research Sheet.

Resources:
Factual information on units
A Dictionary of Measures, Units and Conversions -University of Exeter
A Dictionary of Units of Measurement -Russ Rowlett and UNC at Chapel Hill
The International System of unit (SI) -Bureau International des Poids et Mesures

More “opinionated” information, pros and cons.
US Metrication Association -pro metric. Click through the links in the "Metric system information" section
UK Metrication Association -British pro metric association. Click on the "History of metrication in the UK" and "Anti-Metric myths" links
SI -pro metric sight with good information
Freedom2Measure -pro US/English standards. Click on the "Our way of measuring is under threat" link
English Weights & Measures -has Pro English arguments, with good info. on units. Click on the "anti-metrication" link
British Weight and Measures Association -site that "exists to protect and promote customary UK weights and measures"

-Part 2: Group Work
1. Come together and present to the group what each member found out, summarizing each section of the Research Sheet.
2. Use a a copy of the Group Decision Sheet.
3. Make sure you have gone to all of the sites below. If it will help with your discussion, return to any of the sites as a group.
4. As a group fill out your Group Decision Sheet, answering the question:

What system, metric or US/English, will you recommend for all of the measurements?

Evaluation:
Students will be graded on the quality of the two worksheets. Emphasis is placed on the depth to which the topics are covered. See the Rubric for more details.

Conclusion:
In the United States, the Metric System will some day be the rule of the land. Congress passed legislation back in 1975 to move the United States towards metrication. Since that time, many initiatives have come and gone, many without any success. After this activity, you should be able to decide for yourself if you think the metric system is the way to go.